25 December 2009

Rest easy, sleep well my brothers.
Know the line has held, your job is done.
Rest easy, sleep well.
Others have taken up where you fell, the line has held.
Peace, peace, and farewell....

unknown

These wreaths -- some 5,000 -- are donated by the Worcester Wreath Co. of Harrington, Maine. The owner, Morill Worcester, not only provides the wreaths, but covers the trucking expense as well. He's done this since 1992. A wonderful guy. Also, most years, groups of Maine school kids combine an educational trip to DC with this event to help out.

Please share this with everyone you know. We hear too much about the bad things people do. Every one should hear about this. Thanks to a good friend who sent me this.

For more about Morill's commitment in remembering our fallen defenders of liberty and to help in remembering real heroes by sponsoring a wreath for Christmas 2010, click here and visit Wreathes Across America

23 December 2009

I encourage each of my readers to click on the Manhattan Declaration link in the upper left column and find out more about its intent and call for action - and sign it.

In light of our congressmen denying inalienable rights {through the proposed healthcare reform] to ALL unborn children as well as turning a deaf ear to the more than 60% of Americans who are pleading with them to not fund abortion with our money, there is sadly the liklihood that, we as Americans, will have to defend the future of our country and our Constitution against their actions.

What follows is a letter I sent to my Bishop regarding the Manhattan Declaration and my expectations that he, along with our country's spiritual leaders, stand up and be counted in the defense of life. Please consider your involvement and sign the Declaration.

Ways you can be effective in defending Life;

Read and sign the Manhattan Declaration in support of the original signers Wiite the leaders of your churches and let them know what the Manhattan Declaration is and ask them to become involved;

Talk with family, friends and neighbors about the Manhattan Declaration;

Write a letters to the Editor of your local newspapers;

Get involved in our Government process and stay informed of assaults on the integrity of Life;

Call and write your congressmen and congresswomen and let them know that you will defend Life and that you are a supporter of the Manhattan Declaration.

Below is a letter that you are free to use and modify when writing your spiritual leaders:

Dear Bishop Loverde:
I am writing you regarding the Manhattan Declaration and the Catholic Church's stand on the sanctity of all human life, the dignity of marriage as a unique, singular, conjugal union between a man and a woman, and the rights of conscience and religious liberty.

Americans of all denominations are suspicious of our government's intrusion and legislation that circumvents certain individual rights in an effort to closer align American society with a liberal egalitarian view.

Ironically, the very laws enacted to create new rights for others are supplanting our traditional and deeply held belief in inalienable rights - the very idea from which the foundation of our civilization was built. As an example, a point has been reached to where "gay rights" are being forced in our schools in a way that abridges religious freedoms and beliefs.

The original 150 signers of the Manhattan Declaration have vowed civil disobedience if they are forced to endorse or take part in "anti-life acts" or bless gay marriages among other things that violate the Christian conscience. These religious leaders (including 15 American Bishops ) have all stated that they will continue to practice their Christian faith even if it leads to jail time, loss of tax emption, fines, etc. They have chosen to make their stand and to preserve the organs of society and fight against benevolent despotism which historically has been hard to identify.

I understand that many American Catholics are unclear about the nature of civil disobedience. I would ask my fellow countrymen of all religious denominations to refer to history and one of our greatest advocates of inalienable rights and human dignities, Martin Luther King, Jr. In his letter from a Birmingham Jail in 1963, he wrote to his colleagues to answer their concerns about his civil disobedience:

One may well ask: "How can you advocate breaking some laws and obeying others?" The answer lies in the fact that there are two types of laws: just and unjust. I would be the first to advocate obeying just laws. One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. I would agree with St. Augustine that "an unjust law is no law at all."

I believe all Catholics should be aware of this opportunity to draw the line in the sand and stand together with our religious leaders in preparing to disobey unjust laws that erode our inalienable rights and the fundamental Christian beliefs upon which America was founded. I would also note that it is our society that has fought world-wide in defense of such inalienable rights.

Given the current state of American society and the directions our government is forcefully perusing, I ask you to consider making the Manhattan Declaration widely distributed throughout parishes of the Archdioceses of Arlington and that it is made an emergency focus issue as soon as possible. Many good Catholics and fellow Christians are unaware of the dangers that face their rights as faithful Christians and opportunity available through the Manhattan Declaration.

In closing, I wanted to say that as a culture, we Americans have lost vigilance on the matters at hand.

It is time to build together in courage and solidarity. In Alexander Solzhenitsyn's 1978 address to the graduating class of Harvard titled A World Split Apart , he pointed out that "from ancient times decline in courage has been considered the beginning of the end".

I would also like to point to the historical dangers of rampant secularism leading to persecution of faiths. In 1794 the French, as a deliberate action, rode into the Catholic Vendée and brutally murdered hundreds of thousands of faithful Catholics. Why - Because they stood-up for their faith and the protection of Catholic priests who were being exterminated because they refused to take oath to the new French Constitution. The freedom to worship the way they choose today it is largely due to the sacrifice of those who died in the Vendée massacres. It was the French Revolution turning against the very people from whom it claimed legitimacy. It proved the faithlessness of the Revolution to its own principles. I fear that we may repeat history here in the United States.

Thank you for taking the time to hear me out. I am available to discuss this further as well as becoming instrumental in organizing to defend our faith.

The corruption of using the public treasury as a check book to buy the votes of Senator Nelson and Senator Sanders — in the face not only overwhelming public opposition, but also in the face of a public that now wants Congress to do nothing on health care — means that extraordinary measures are needed to kill ObamaCare.

This plan, if executed properly, will kill the bill and it will give opponents two more bites at the apple, after it passes the Senate.

There are some atmospheric conditions that will help this plan work. For example, both sides of the net roots should cease fire on posts against each other. There must be a truce until the bill is dead. The target is the bill, not each other.

So, for those on the left who have decided to kill this bill, they are welcome to join in this the kill-the-bill fun.

Rationale: There are many reasons in agreement between the right and the left and the American public about why this bill must be killed:

1. It will increase health care costs;
2. The individual mandate is massive government intrusion on individual freedom, and is a gift to the private insurers, and disproportionately impacts lower-income families;
3. The fantasies of CBO’s assumptions notwithstanding, this bill will accelerate our march to financial insolvency; and,
4. Passage of the bill merely reinforces the practice of buying votes with debt issued by the U.S. Treasury;
5. Among many other reasons, in the words of Howard Dean, the bill does more harm than good.

The Plan: First, conservatives will object to the appointment of the conferees. This is not a motion, so it is non-debatable. An objection cannot be overcome unless the Senator making the objection caves. Let’s hope Senator McConnell agrees with this approach — but regardless, the objection shall be made.

This forces two votes in the U.S. House, one vote to amend the Senate bill on the House floor, since the Senate bill likely cannot pass the House unamended, and will force another vote on final passage of the amended House bill.

So, first, conservatives force two votes in the House, by preventing the appointment of the conferees, and therefore, preventing a House-Senate Conference.

Second, the left will focus on three separate issues to kill the bill in the House. The object of these issues is not to support these policies per say, but to add items to the House bill that will be so objectionable that when the bill goes back over to the Senate, that the Dems lose one or more of their 60 votes.

The Public Option: The progressive’s net roots should hold accountable the Democratic House members who said they would not vote for the bill if there was no public option. Progressives need to produce enough votes to force the public option back into the bill. Forcing the public option back into the bill is in the progressive’s interest since it will show they have the political power to do it, and will set a precedent for a new health care reform baseline in the House for Democrats. It is in conservative’s interest for this to happen because if it does, Senator Lieberman’s vote reverts to a NO.

The Nelson Buy-Off: Both the left and the right net roots will focus on pulling the Nebraska and Vermont free pass on increased Medicaid spending, on the basis that it is a corrupt back room deal that may be unconstitutional on the basis that it violates the equal protection clause (the 14th amendment to the Constitution.)

Unions: Unions must pull the Senate tax on Cadillac health plans, and replace it with the House tax on individuals. (I know, I can’t believe I just wrote that either!) This will force Senators, when the bill goes back to the Senate, to oppose the bill which could force the Dems lower than 60 votes.

Hold the No Votes: Conservatives need to hold and add one or two more no votes to the 39 House votes against the bill, among those Democrats who have concerns about their own re-election or who have announced their retirement — since the leverage from the Speaker has substantially decreased. If every No vote on the original House bill holds, there only needs to be two additional no votes.

Pro-Life and Pro-Abortion Forces: In short, have at it. Given the Stupak amendment majority in the House, the pro-lifers must stick Stupak back on the bill, so that when it is sent back to the Senate, the pro-abortion majority can pull Stupak back off. When the bill goes back to the Senate, the pro-abortion forces can remove Stupak, just as they did a couple of weeks ago. Once Stupak is pulled again from the Senate it must go back to the House to be amended, or die there.

I am willing to coordinate these actions with the left in real-time, and work with the Progressives who want to kill the bill — to share intelligence and whip counts. This way the left and the right working together will accomplish not only what we want, but what the American people want.

Oh, I did not mention this in the original post, but should have:

we do not need any more than 42 votes on the House floor, and last time there were 39 No votes.

Assuming we have a hard base of 25 no Dem votes, then the net roots need to produce eight House votes on either the abortion or public option question.

The Stupak folks ought to be able produce ten additional no votes.

This is not difficult math. And MoveOn.org is already telling its members to oppose the Senate bill.

16 December 2009

03 December 2009

Government Bailout Of Media will Mean Government
Partnering With Media - Chilling, given the influence the federal government has with the financial and auto industries. Read More......

"Government's going to have to be involved, in one way or the other," to save journalism from an ongoing "market failure" that will only worsen without intervention" said Rep. Henry Waxman, Chairman of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee.

Waxman bemoaned the demise of newspapers across the country, including in Denver and Seattle, and warned that the troubling media trends will continue. "This recent depression in the media sector is not cyclical," Waxman said. "It is structural."

"Congress can't impose a solution" to that structural problem, he said. But the government should partner with the media industry to ensure a sound future for journalism. Waxman praised the record of "independent" reporting in U.S. history and said it has implications for democracy.

One might argue that what you are about to read is an isolated incident. As one with experience in dealing with unions for the management side, I can truthfully tell you that this type of action is is not isolated.

Words that come to mind while reading this are "bully", "un-American", "petty", "arrogant", and "pathetic"......

Who are these people? In the coming month I will post a Union Wall of Shame of such incidents as well as information laying-out the intentions of Unions in our country and the Obama Administration's relationships to unions (specifically the S.E.I.U.).

There is a significant segment of American society which views organized Christianity with fear, distrust, and downright hostility. Especially the variety that is commonly espoused in a conservative Southern state like Texas. To this segment of Americans, Christians are uptight, intolerant, and rigid people who want to take away the freedoms of others. While this view is admittedly not totally without foundation in the actions of some Christians today and in the past, it is largely inaccurate and unfair.

Of course, there are a lot of people who claim to be Christians but really don’t act like it, contributing to confusion. To help reduce that confusion, I offer the following highly unusual story of true Christians in action, which took place at a high school football game in Texas:

I must admit, as a non-Christian myself, my first reaction was one of incredulity. Weren’t these folks taking it a bit far? After all, the “athletes” of Gainesville State were not merely underprivileged youths, but “kids with convictions for drugs, assault and robbery”. One Gainesville player named Gerald complains that people are frequently “lookin’ at us like we’re criminals.” It might not be a bad idea for someone to remind Gerald that he and his teammates *are* criminals. Minimizing one’s criminal past is not generally considered to be a productive step in rehabilitation.

That, however, is not the responsibility of the folks at Grapevine Faith. Rather, being a bunch of the aforementioned scurrilous Christians, they looked to their Bibles and saw that Jesus spent much of his time ministering to society’s outcasts, specifically including criminals. Their faith teaches that every human life has value, and at the behest of their football coach, decided to make a prominent demonstration of that belief.

The issue is not whether Grapevine’s actions will ultimately have any significant impact on the Gainesville kids’ lives. Rather, what’s important is what their behavior says about the Grapevine folks. They went way beyond any reasonable expectation of their normal duties as hosts, because they felt it was what their faith called upon them to do. At a time when many so-called Christians are accused of hypocrisy (and often with justification), these people proved themselves to be the opposite. Whether we believe, agree, or approve, or not, there is no question in my mind that the true spirit of Christianity flourished for one night in Texas in November of 2008.

So the next time you hear or read someone trashing Christianity and Christians, think about the Grapevine Faith folks and ask yourself if you would have done what they did.

29 November 2009

“[Former President George W. Bush] couldn’t speak with flowery language and even made grammatical mistakes but spoke as plainly as an American farmer. [ President Barack Obama speaks] “with sweet but empty words.”

- Chinese blogger Zhao “Hecaitou” Dezhu

“Learn English from Obama: Instead of saying ‘I want to eat,’ say ‘I am a big supporter of non-hunger.’”

Whereas it has pleased God, the Father of all Mercies, to bestow upon us innumerable unmerited favours in the course of the year past;
it highly becomes us duly to recollect his goodness, and in a public and solemn manner to express the greatful feelings of our hearts :

I have therefore thought fit, with the advice and consent of the Council, to appoint Thursday the 15th day of December next, to be observed as a
Day of Public Thanksgiving and Praise to our Divine Benefactor throughout this Commonwealth—Calling upon the Ministers of the Gospel, with their respective Congregations, and the whole body of the People, religiously to observe the said Day by celebrating the Praises of that all-gracious Being, of whose Bounty we have experienced so large a share.

He hath prevented Epidemical Diseases from spreading, and afforded us a general state of Health. He hath regarded our Pastures and Fields with an Eye of the most indulgent Parent, and rewarded the Industry of our Husbandmen with a plentiful Harvest.

Notwithstanding the unreasonable obstructions to our trade on the seas, it has generally been prosperous and our fisheries successful.

Our civil Constitutions of Government, formed by ourselves, and administered by Men of our own free Election, are by His Grace continued to us. And we still enjoy” the inestimable Blessings of the Gospel and right of worshipping God according to His own Institutions and the honest dictates of our Consciences.

And, together with our thanksgiving, earnest Supplication to God is hereby recommended for the forgiveness of our Sins which have rendered us unworthy of the least of his Mercies ; and that by the sanctifying influence of his Spirit, our hearts and manners may be corrected, and we become a reformed and happy People—That he would direct and prosper the Administration of the Government of the United States, and of this and the other States in the Union. That he would still afford his Blessings on our Trade, Agriculture, Fisheries and all the labours of our hands. That he would smile upon our University, and all Seminaries of Learning—That Tyranny and Usurpation may everywhere come to an end—That the Nations who are contending for true liberty may still be succeeded by his Almighty aid—That every Nation and Society of Men may be inspired with the knowledge and feeling of their natural and just rights, and enabled to form such systems of Civil Government as shall be fully adopted to promote and establish their Social Security and Happiness—And, finally, that in the course of God’s Holy Providence, the great Family of Mankind may bow to the sceptre of the Prince of Peace so that mutual Friendship and Harmony may universally prevail.

And I do recommend to the People of this Commonwealth to abstain from all such Labours and Recreations as may not be consistent with the Solemnity of the said Day.

Given at the Council Chamber in Boston, this sixth day of October, in the year of our Lord, one Thousand seven Hundred and Ninety-six, and in the twenty-first Year of the Independence of the United States of America.

Mr. Obama, Ms. Pelosi, et. al.:
How's the job creation going under your stimulus plan using American's money? American businessmen have proven to he wildly successful in creating jobs on their own whereas our government has been a abject failure (currently and historically). If you think you are punishing every American investor for the fall of Wall Street and our Government failure to restrain itself, you will be doomed to repeat history.

It comes to our attention that the MEMRI Blog highlights an article from the Saudi al-Watan in Arabic that - according to an Afghan source - the United States is talking to the Taliban seeking to trade control of 5 provinces in exchange for the cessation of attacks on US bases. MEMRI summarizes:

An Afghan source in Kabul reports that U.S. Ambassador in Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry is holding secret talks with Taliban elements headed by the movement's foreign minister, Ahmad Mutawakil, at a secret location in Kabul. According to the source, the U.S. has offered the Taliban control of the Kandahar, Helmand, Oruzgan, Kunar and Nuristan provinces in return for a halt to the Taliban missile attacks on U.S. bases.

Kunar province borders the Khyber Pass region where the majority of US and NATO supplies pass enroute from Pakistan. And the remaining four provinces constitute fully the southern 25% of Afghanistan's territory.

This, if true, is a disturbing development.

I have tried to come up with scenarios of why someone would lie about it in a leak. What would be to gain? Who would gain, and what would they gain? Without sleeping on it, the options for such appear narrow at best.

What does seem logical is that an Afghan privy to the negotiations could have become (rightly) spooked that they might just pull it off, and leaked word in hopes that it might so anger American public opinion that the entire endeavor might be scrapped. That's the most logical explanation for motivation I see at the moment.

It would also fit in consistently with Ambassador Eikenberry's leaked cables recently railing against a 'surge' in forces in Afghanistan. He wouldn't voice such without thinking he has his hands on something else. Could this be it? The surrender of 25% of Afghan territory in exchange for some form of ceasefire?

One would hope not. But if so, this demonstrated type of 'effort' in Afghanistan would prove to be the strongest indication that it may be time to advocate the full pullout of American forces from Afghanistan.

If this is true, then not one more drop of American blood for a path that resembles Pakistan's path. You recall Pakistan's series of surrenders touted as agreements, right?

CRS Report Shows Most Bills Subject to Cloture Pass

Nov. 19, 2009, 10:25 p.m. By John StantonRoll Call Staff

A new study of Senate voting patterns shows the chamber has approved more than 97 percent of all bills subject to a cloture motion to begin debate — a finding that could undercut Democratic efforts to paint a key health care vote on Saturday as procedural.

According to a new Congressional Research Service report, since 1999 the Senate has approved 97.6 percent of all bills when lawmakers first voted to begin debate.

Under Senate rules, debate on a bill cannot begin unless there is a motion to do so. Unless all 100 Members agree to begin debate, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) must first file for cloture on the motion to move to the bill — a vote that requires at least 60 votes.

According to CRS, between 1999 and 2008 there were 41 times when lawmakers first voted for a cloture motion to begin debate, and the Senate ultimately passed the bill on 40 occasions. Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), one of the lead opponents of the Democratic-led health care reform effort, requested the report.

While technically a procedural vote, the minority party has used the 60-vote threshold over the years as a way to block legislation they dislike. More significantly, these sorts of votes have figured heavily in election fights, most famously when Republicans accused Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) of flip flopping during his 2004 presidential campaign after he tried to explain how through a procedural motion he had voted for a supplemental appropriations bill before he voted against it.

In the health care reform debate, with Reid struggling to find 60 votes in support of the actual bill, he has sought to assure his Members that the vote is simply a procedural vote that will simply allow them to begin the debate — and that it will not lock them into a final yes vote on the underlying legislation.

But Republicans have repeatedly argued that Saturday’s vote to begin debate is tantamount to voting for the bill. GOP operatives have vowed that if wavering moderate Democrats Sens. Ben Nelson (Neb.), Mary Landrieu (La.) and Blanche Lincoln (Ark.) vote for the cloture motion Saturday, they will use the vote against them. Lincoln is particularly vulnerable because she is up for re-election in 2010 and is being targeted by Republicans. All three Senators have been reluctant to say whether they are willing to vote for the cloture motion, although Democratic aides Thursday were cautiously optimistic that they would be able to muster the 60 votes needed.

Democrats dismissed the report, saying that while the approval rate may appear high, Republicans have repeatedly used procedural motions and other tactics to stymie debate of legislation.

“If a vote for the motion to proceed should be considered a vote for the underlying bill, why are they making us jump through these unnecessary hoops of holding them?” Reid spokesman Jim Manley said Wednesday. “If it’s all the same to them, let’s just go straight to an up-or-down vote on the bill itself. Anything else is a waste of time.”

03 November 2009

Cas Sunstein (Obama’s Regulation czar) and Mr. Obama intend to fully regulate the internet and police content via the FCC’s Internet Policy Statement. They also plan to do away with net neutrality meaning quality of service (or possible lack of quality of service) is the same for all of us. This means that, even if we are willing to pay for high-speed access, we will all get what the government prescribes a adequate for us “people”.

This is important for several reasons:

1.The internet has filled in where major media has failed in providing balanced, factual news. This does not mean that all internet news is “truth” or accurate. It does mean that we, the people, are able to get information and judge for ourselves on its “truth and accuracy”.
2.If, through regulation of the internet, the government over-sees all private networks, they then have access to our private communications, thoughts and ideas at every router point located in the US.
3.If the government over-sees private networks (similar to the way they over-see the auto and financial, including insurance, i.e. AIG, industries now) then they will over-see internet transport providers as well as local ISPs.
4.Cas Sunstein and Mr. Obama’s cabinet and advisors feel that the internet is running rampant and is chaotic – and therefore need organization (regulation).
5.We are an intelligent, educated, truthful people. We can decide for ourselves what is a truth and what is a lie. We do not need our thoughts, ideas or news filtered.

The internet grew from ARPANET which was primarily a government funded research tool. The intent was to connect diverse networks to share ideas and communications. It went from there to private access and the ubiquitous service we all rely on called “the internet”.

The concept of sharing networks is as old as civilization. It has been the basis for commerce, communications, family and economic growth. The internet is an “oasis” of thoughts and ideas. Our modern internet (networks) are used precisely for the same reasons that desert nomads used oasis’. They were way-points for trade, food, story-telling, .thought and sharing of the arts and literature. Regulation of our networks will ultimately lead to regulation of these basic human needs.

Also, regulation invariably means taxation. You may not realize it, but you are already taxed on internet access via heavy regulation of telcos – the largest owners of the fiber and copper lines to your homes and businesses. However, the “big” tax Washington is interested in is sales tax for online purchases at sites like eBay – itself a very successful oasis. Face Book, Myspace and the others like them are also incredible oasis’ of family and thought.

Sorry for running on with this. The internet has been a big part of my life since the early 80’s and I have helped build and watched it grow into the incredible tool it is today.

What to do:

1.Be aware and watch what they are doing –
2.Email write or fax your senators and representatives (both parties) letting them know that this is not acceptable and that you will be voting in 2010 (go to OPENCONGRESS.ORG for senator & representative contact information)
3.Let your friends and family know what is being planned for the internet.

“If ye love wealth greater than liberty, the tranquility of servitude
greater than the animating contest for freedom, go home from us in peace. We seek not your
counsel, nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you; May your chains set
lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen.”